Scent control - Leather slings, belts etc.?

[Desertfox]

That is the good thing about this forum and this country. People can disagree and still exist in the same environment.
While I don't agree with everything everyone says, I am glad we have this great number of hunters willing to share information with eachother.
It is good to know there are alot of us out there that are as passionate about our sport as we are about life.
Whatever you do this fall, go hunting and take a kid with you. Pass along this passion to the next generation. If everyone hunted the same, we would have one rifle, one bow, one muzzleloader, and one camo. Everyone would be sitting in the same spot waiting for the same shot.

 

[UniversalFrost]

My friend was also smoking a Marlboro as he was walking along the road... Hmmm...maybe that ol'buck was a smoker?

Knew a guy once that had a crow that was addicted to cigs. Strange, but true.

Also, I am a bowhunter as well and as long as I stay down wind of deer I have been successfull in stalking up to within bow range. And I don't use any of that noscent wash soap for clothes, etc... . Have been still hunting on the and had deer come within feet of my spot. Bagged a buck a few years ago from about 5 yards as he was walking away from me after passing me. He and the doe accompanying him only sniffed the air once each as they caught my scent when they passed my location. I guess deer must like old spice deodrant and aftershave.

 

[swampdog]

UniversalFrost,
I had a similar experience with different results. I was still hunting and had paused by a blowdown that was beside a little creek. A doe and 2 fawns came out of some new growth pines that were across the creek. They started browsing in the hardwoods that were directly in front of me. After about 15 minutes the doe spotted me. She came up to the edge of the creek and started stomping her foot and bobbing her head, trying to get me to move. She was quickly joined by both her fawns and all three of them stood in line, stomping and bobbing. After a few minutes of this they seemed to decide I was just a funny looking stump or something. At this time they were no more than 10 feet away. They went back to browsing but the doe was still suspicious and started feeding downwind, downstream. After she got about 100 feet downstream from me she caught wind, her flag went up and they were out of there.
At this time I was really being "retentive" about scent control. No leather, nonscent detergent, cover scent, rubber boots, everything recommended by the Saturday morning gurus. At ten feet, with the deer upwind, I was a funny looking tree. At 100 feet, downwind, I was threat.
I still practice scent control because it can't hurt and every little bit helps. I still think that playing the wind is your best bet. I wear rubber boots hunting because I hunt in the swamp, mostly. If I'm hunting mature timber or ever get the chance to hunt some of those big midwestern cornfield bucks, I doubt I'll be stumbling around in big rubber boots.
Location, hunting pressure, the use of treestands all have an effect on how nervous human scent makes deer. When I used to hunt from trees all the time I watched deer spook when they crossed the path I used getting to the tree. I also watched a couple of them follow my trail directly to the tree, one of them even licking the screw-in step I'd used to climb up. Go figure.
Play the wind.